Generally, macroscopic objects, i.e. objects whose largest dimension is more than one millimeter, are fabricated by machining and/or molding techniques.
Alternatively, additive fabrication, also referred to as rapid prototyping or rapid manufacturing, is used to fabricate macroscopic objects, using polymers and metal materials. A primary advantage of additive fabrication is its ability to create almost any shape or geometric feature. Moreover, while construction of a model with standard methods can be impossible depending on the complexity of the model, additive systems for rapid prototyping can typically produce models in a few hours, depending on the type of machine being used and on the size and number of models being produced simultaneously.
In additive fabrication, metallic objects are usually made from metallic powders that are melted by a high power laser and laid down in successive layers to build up the objects from a series of cross sections. The metallic powder is added to the surface of the objects being fabricated, this surface being held at the fusion temperature. Therefore, it is necessary to tightly control the temperature of the surface of the object. Fabricating high precision objects proves difficult. Moreover, the resulting objects need to be heated and rectified for the purpose of releasing internal strains caused by thermal deformations during the addition of matter. As a result, additive fabrication techniques are used only with a limited range of metals alloys or ceramics. Moreover, it is found that properties of the resulting objects are at most equal to objects fabricated by machining techniques.
There is a need for a method and a system for fabricating macroscopic objects, alleviating shortcomings of the prior art.